little miss black

-124-

"Cass!" Grace yelled after her. Cass quickened her pace from the Charms classroom, dodging through the crowds. "Cass, wait up!"

Cass didn't stop, nearly sending some second years flying as she sped up even more. Grace ran to catch up with her, grabbing her shoulder.

"Cass, for fucks sake." She panted. "You can't avoid me forever."

"Watch me." Cass snapped, pulling her shoulder from Graces grip. "I think you're spending enough time with the Black family at the moment."

"Cass, please. I never meant to hurt you." Grace said pleadingly. "I'm sorry." Cass bit her lip. It wasn't even Grace she was angry at, it was Regulus.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Cass asked quietly, trying to mask the crack in her voice. "I just- I don't even know Grace, I don't know anything anymore."

"We didn't want it getting out." Grace said. "It's not like we're dating, we're just... we have a thing."

"I don't understand why he would refuse to speak to me and then shag one of my best friends." Cass whispered. "I'm not angry at you. I'm sorry for avoiding you, I just don't know what to say."

"He's trying to protect you." Grace said. "He doesn't want you to get hurt." Cass laughed humourlessly.

"What is it with my brothers and not wanting me to get hurt?" She said. "It's a bit fucking late for that. I don't need protection, I'm a big girl now."

"He thinks it's what's best Cass." Grace said.

"He's a fucking idiot then." Cass muttered. "What about you then? Doesn't he care about protecting you?"

"No one was meant to even find out." Grace shook her head. "It would hardly be obvious, I mean I'm in seventh year and he's in fifth. God when you put it like that it makes me sound like a cougar or something. I mean — there's literally a year between us, I'm seventeen and he's sixteen. Gosh I do sound like a cougar-"

"Grace, calm down." Cass put a stop to her nervous rambling. "You don't sound like a cougar, you're overthinking it."

"Anyways, it really doesn't mean anything and if you want me to break it off I-"

"No." Cass said. "Don't do that, you can do what you like. It's fine, really."

"Are we talking about actually fine or it's-not-fine-but-I'm-saying-it-is-to-get-out-of-this-conversation fine?" Grace asked. Cass laughed.

"Actually fine Grace. It's really not you I'm mad at. I'm sorry." Cass said, and as the words left her mouth she realised how true they were. She was hardly even mad at Regulus, she was mad at the whole fucking Black family — for being such stupid blood supremacists, for putting Sirius and herself through years of literal torture, for forcing Regulus to become a death eater — the list seemed endless.

"It's okay." Grace said. She gently pulled Cass in for a hug, resting her head on Cass' shoulder. Love you Cass." Cass smiled.

"Love you too Gracie."

•••

"Holy shit who let me leave all this homework to the last minute?" Sirius groaned, bashing his head on the table. "This was a stupid idea." Remus rolled his eyes.

"I told you so." He said simply, flicking the page of his book. "Numerous times."

"Unlucky mate." James reached over and patted his shoulder.